MIAMI -- Giancarlo Stanton still needs to have five teeth fixed or replaced, along with a procedure to assess how much blood remains in his sinus cavity, and he will be understandably leery the next time he grabs a bat. Dri Archer Steelers Jersey . He also knows things could be a whole lot worse. The Miami slugger spoke out for the first time Thursday night about the injury that ended his season, doing so while still sporting a pair of slightly blackened eyes and with a wound evident over the left side of his mouth. His return wasnt triumphant; the Marlins were beaten 6-2 by the Washington Nationals. Stanton rejoined the club exactly one week after taking a fastball from Milwaukees Mike Fiers in the face. "Swellings way down, much better than I envisioned," Stanton said. "Just got to get the grill fixed and well go from there." Stanton sounded very much like himself, though he is still a bit uncomfortable about putting the extent of his dental damage on display. The 24-year-old outfielder met with reporters, but no photos or videos were permitted. Jeff Baker drove in one run and scored another for the Marlins (74-7. Miami native Gio Gonzalez (9-10) allowed two runs in seven innings, and Bryce Harper had three hits for the Nationals, who are pushing for home-field advantage in the NL playoffs. Kevin Frandsen and Anthony Rendon each had two hits for Washington (88-64), which took control with a five-run fourth off Miami starter Brad Hand. Hand (3- gave up five earned runs and eight hits in five innings. "It was nice to see him and see that hes doing all right," Hand said of Stanton. "But weve still got to come in here and get the job done." Stanton said he remembers Fiers arm action on the pitch, and thinks his eyes found the ball about midway through its journey to the plate. The pitch came in and caught the NL MVP contender in the face, and Stanton said he briefly blacked out. "My ears were ringing," Stanton said. "I couldnt hear nothing, except the ring. I was checking my mouth, just the blood, mouth full and having chunks of teeth floating around." Stanton hoped to play all 162 games this season, and even envisioned a return later this year after the injury. The Marlins ruled him officially out for 2014 earlier this week. When he returns, Stanton said he will wear additional protection on his helmet. He doesnt expect to have any mental blocks about playing again. "I think when we decide the protection, Ill have more reassurance," Stanton said. Stanton led the NL with 37 home runs and 105 RBIs when he got hurt, plus had drawn more intentional walks than any other two NL players combined -- all part of the reason why his teammates have insisted for weeks that he should be the league MVP. "Thats not up to me," Stanton said. "Thats the voters. Theres nothing I can do." Stanton has heard from plenty of people who have endured similar injuries, including Atlantas Jason Heyward. Stantons orbital bone was broken by the pitch from Fiers -- but not shattered, which is a critical distinction. Stanton said his vision is normal and that he anticipates no reason why he wont be able to begin his usual off-season program in December. Still, the force of the hit was massive. Stantons face was struck on the left, but blood was found in the sinuses on the right side of his head -- with an additional CT scan still looming to assess that situation, which is currently preventing him from flying commercially. The Marlins brought him back to Miami on a private jet. Stanton isnt sure how many stitches were needed to close the wounds, either. "I was really fortunate," Stanton said. "I could have my mouth wired shut now, I could have a plate in my face, I could have a lot of things. Ill take a few missing teeth over all that. My face didnt do exactly what it was supposed to do by taking that force, but it helped me out." KS FOR CAPPS Miami reliever Carter Capps recorded four outs, all by strikeout. He is the seventh Marlins pitcher to do that, according to STATS. TRAINERS ROOM Nationals: 3B Ryan Zimmerman went 1 for 7 as the DH in a simulated game at the Nationals training facility in Viera, Florida. Marlins: RHP Jose Fernandez, out for the season because of elbow reconstruction surgery, might begin a light throwing regimen on Oct. 1. UP NEXT Nationals: RHP Doug Fister (14-6, 2.55) gets the ball Friday night in Miami. Marlins: RHP Tom Koehler (9-9, 3.71) starts Friday against Washington. Ramon Foster Steelers Jersey . The Stampeders announced the move on Wednesday. Bell spent his first two CFL seasons with the B. Stephon Tuitt Steelers Jersey . Gauteng High Court Judge Dunstan Mlambo ruled Tuesday that South African media houses will be allowed to install three remote controlled cameras in court for the Olympic athletes trial starting next week to capture images that likely will be seen by millions around the world. http://www.shoptheofficialsteelers.com/Elite-Greg-Lloyd-Steelers-Jersey/ . -- One shot came out of bottom of a cactus, the other from the base of a desert bush with rocks scattered around it. DENVER -- This time, the Sacramento Kings enjoyed their trip to Denver. Isaiah Thomas scored 33 points, Rudy Gay had 32 and the Kings used 39 third-quarter points to race past the Nuggets 109-95 on Sunday night. DeMarcus Cousins added 27 points for the Kings, who snapped a nine-game losing streak to the Nuggets at the Pepsi Center. It was Sacramentos first win in Denver since a 118-115 victory on April 5, 2008. The Kings have won three of their last four games overall, including both ends of a back-to-back. "The third quarter kind of dictated the game," Thomas said. "We were getting stops and we got out and ran. Thats when were at our best, when were in transition. We were in attack mode. Rudy started it off, DeMarcus got easy buckets and I just got what they gave me. I was making open shots. We played a helluva third quarter." Randy Foye and Evan Fournier each scored 27 points for the slumping Nuggets, who lost for the seventh time in the last eight games. The Nuggets fell to 1-5 without leading scorer Ty Lawson, who missed a sixth game because of a fractured left rib. "We basically controlled the whole first half, did what we wanted to do, and then we came out and gave up 39 points in the third quarter. Thats unacceptable," Foye said after Denver managed just 18 points in the third. "Its tough, man. But weve got to stay together, weve got to keep fighting and keep believing; dont give in. Thats the main thing. Everybody goes through times like this during the season. Its important for us to continue to fight, to keep pushing." Down 58-51 after Foye hit a pair of 3-pointers in the third, the Kings responded with a 21-2 run that put them in front 72-60 with 4:55 left in the period. Gay scored nine points in the decisive stretch, including consecutive three-point plays. Ike Taylor Steelers Jersey. Cousins hit a couple of jumpers and Thomas twice connected from 3-point range, with Kenneth Farieds mid-range jumper accounting for Denvers only points during Sacramentos surge. "I wouldnt say it was the best quarter we put together all year but it was pretty good," Gay said. "We got back defensively, Fournier was hurting us in the first half, we got out and guarded him. They still hit a couple of tough shots but for the most part we attacked, got to the foul line and found the open man." The Kings carried an 87-70 lead into the fourth quarter. A 3-pointer by Wilson Chandler pulled the Nuggets to 94-84 with 6:41 left, but the Kings scored the next nine points, including another three-point play by Gay. The Nuggets opened a 13-point lead midway through the second quarter. Fournier connected on two 3-pointers and Jan Vesely, making his home debut after being acquired Thursday from Washington, broke through for a pair of dunks. Sacramento pulled to 52-48 at halftime, outscoring the Nuggets 8-1 in the last 2:10 of the second quarter, with Gay driving for a dunk to close the spurt. NOTES: Nuggets F Darrell Arthur missed the game after he strained his left hip during Fridays loss at Chicago. ... The Kings announced that Jason Terry, who was acquired from Brooklyn with Reggie Evans in exchange for Marcus Thornton, will miss the rest of the season so he can continue rehabilitating a knee injury. ... Sacramento has scored 100 or more points in three of its last four games. ... Gay surpassed 20 points for the third time in four games. ... Fourniers 27 points were a career high, surpassing his previous best by two. Wholesale NFL Jerseys ' ' '